Beneath the Surface: Nonviolent Extremism, Reintegration Failure, and the Weaponization of Belonging

• In Event: Critical Issues in Anomie and Extremism

Abstract

This paper investigates the temporal relationship between postwar reintegration periods and the rise of right-wing extremism (RWE) among U.S. military veterans. Drawing on the “protean enemy” framework (Stern, 2003) and using a subset of 533 military-affiliated cases from the PIRUS dataset (1948–2021), the analysis tests Kathleen Belew’s (2018) thesis that RWE activity spikes in the wake of major U.S. wars. A time series approach is employed to assess patterns in RWE involvement during post-Vietnam, Gulf, Iraq, and Afghanistan war periods. Findings suggest increases in extremist involvement during these windows. Veterans seem to face heightened ideological vulnerability as they navigate disrupted identities, untreated trauma, and weak institutional reintegration. The analysis discusses the role of digital platforms in amplifying radical narratives and increasing non-violent extremism. This work advances a public health-informed framework for counter-extremism and highlights the need for adaptive veteran support systems in the postwar context.

Author

• Anna King, Georgian Court University